Cotton-picker&#39;s sack



C. B. TIPTON. COTTON PICKERS SACK. APPLucAnon HLED FEB. 2. 1920.

Patented Apr. 20, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET L C. B. TIPTON. COTTON PICKERS SACK.

APPLICATION ElLED FEB. 2, 1920.

Patented Apr. 20, 1920.

2 SHEET$-SHEET 2.

CLINT BUSH TIPTON', OF TIPTONVILLE, TENNESSEE.

COTTON -PICKERS SACK.

. Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 20, 1920.

Application filed February 2, 1920.- Serial No. 355,578.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLINT BUSH TIPTON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Tiptonville, in the county of Lake and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cotton Pickers Sacks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

y present invention relates to improvements in cotton picker sacks, and it is intended to provide an arrangement in which the body of the sack may be made so as to shift laterally to take care of worn spaces, and also made reversible so that when one end becomes worn all around, the other end may be dragged along the ground and the worn end used in the elevated position next to the body of the wearer.

In addition to the foregoing arrange ment, for the body of the sack, I provide a flap which projects down into the sack on the side next to the body of the wearer, and forms a guide for the hand and a chute for the cotton, down which the cotton can fall freely without striking any obstructions, or falling outside of the sack, and in the use of which the hand of the operator is not likely to strike any raised portion or obstruction tending to wear the fingers or finger nails in the quick work which is eminently desirable with sacks pf the character descrlbed.

In the process of picking cotton a long sack is used, the bottom of which drags along the ground over stubble, clods, sharp stones and various other obstructions which are ordinarily found in cotton fields, and the lower end of the sack when weighted down with the cotton therein tends to become worn or injured bysuch obstructions, resulting in the short life of the sack. This excessive wear is likely to be on certain limited parts only of the sack near its lower end, and by shifting the sack through a small angle only, which may be readily done with the apparatus herein described, a fresh unworn surface may be exposed and dragged along the ground.

Moreover, by arranging the sack body so that it may be turned end for end, the wearing properties of the sack are substantially multiplied by two.

I am aware that it is well known to shift sack bodies end for end, and also to shift the sacks so thatwhat has been the back surface dragged along the ground will become the front or outer surface clear of the ground; but I am not aware that it has been suggested by anyone to shift the sack laterally through a small angle only, whereby an increased number of wearing sufaces may be presented to the ground.

With the tubular sack body just referred to open at both ends, I provide near each end on the exterior thereof a series of eyelets to which snap hooks may be attached for conveniently connecting and disconnecting the sack to or from the shoulder strap worn by the cotton picker.

In order to close the lower end of the sack, a puckering string may be run through these eyelets, but I prefer to provide additional loops somewhat farther from each end, through which a belt may be rove, so that the lower end of the sack may be closed by the puckering string, or by the belt, or by both.

My invention will be more fully understood after reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like parts are indicated by similar reference symbols throughout the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a perspective View of the im-- proved sack with the flap and shoulder strap attached thereto as seen from the front and above the mouth of the sack, parts being broken away;

Fig. 2 is a similar view of the rear of the sack and of the flap;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation showing the bot tom'of the sack closed, and the flap and shoulder strap being shown in section; and

Fig. 4 is a detail showing a front elevation of the shoulder strap and flap as detached from the sack, the upper portion of the sack being indicated in dotted lines.

A represents a tubular sack made of suitable fabric, preferably cotton, duck, or the like, which is made open at both ends and is provided at each end with a series of metal eyelets a secured to the sack by sultable tabs a.

Slightly farther from the end of the sack I provide aseries of loops a made of cotton fabric, leather, or other suitable material,

through which a belt may be rove.

B represents a flap somewhat like an apron, which is secured at its top to the shoulder strap or sling C which passes over the shoulder of the cotton picker, and the lower or front endof this flap is adapted to project down into the upper end of the sack and to form a rear inner wall therefor, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

To the upper portion of this flap the tabs D are secured, to which are connected the ends d of the snap hooks cl, which snap hooks engage the corresponding eyelets a on the outer and rear upper face of the sack. Thus by disengaging these snap hooks and shifting around the sack through the desired angle, and snapping the snap hooks back in place again, the sack may be shifted through an angle subtended by one or more pairs of eyelets.

The eyelets should be preferably symmetrically disposed around the outer wall of the sack as shown. e

The lower end of the sack is preferably closed by the strap E having the buckle e which strap is rove through the lower series of loops a, as shown in Fig. 3. If desired the lower end of the sack may be closed by a puckering string F, passed through the lower series of eyelets a, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2; or, if desired, both thedstrap and the puckering string may be use When it is desired to empty the sack, for

instance to unload the cotton contained therein into a wagon, the securing means for the bottom of the sack are released, and the sack may be emptied from either or both ends, thus saving considerable time in emptying the sack.

As is well known, cotton, especially when containing the seeds, tends to pack tight in a sack and considerable. time is often wasted in attempting to dig it out of a sack in which it has become packed tight.

By having the sack open at both ends this objection is in a large measure avoided.

It will be seen that a single harness comprising the shoulder strap, the flap or apron and the snap hooks may be used with a large numberof sack bodies, as the latter wear out much morerapidly than does the harness.

It will be noted that with the flap projecting down into the mouth of the sack as shown, it will serve as a guard for the hand of the cotton picker, and will protect his fingers or finger nails from getting caught in obstructions at or near the mouth of the sack, and at the same'time will provide a curved smooth surface forming a chute to direct the cotton into the mouth of the bag, and none of the cotton is apt to fall outside of the bag.

Thus it will be seen that I provide an arrangement in which the sack may be used for a long time until practically all of the sides of the bottom are worn, and then may be reversed andthe other end may be similarly used and turned around axially until that is worn also, and then the whole sack body may be discarded and a new sack body used with the same old harness that had formerly been employed, thus effecting great economy in the use of material of this kind; moreover, by having the flap arranged as shown the cotton plcker is enabled to go through the operation of picking cotton rapidly without danger of injury to his fingers or finger nails, and at the same time there is practically no chance of loss in cotton from its falling outside of the sack when the picker drops it into the mouth of the sack in front of the apron.

It will be obvious that various modifications might be made .in the herein described device, and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts which could be used without departing from the spirit of my invention; and I do not mean to limit the invention to such details except as particularly pointed out in the claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In a cotton pickers sack arrangement,

closing said lower end when desired,- and a harness comprising a shoulder strap andanj apron secured thereto, said apron spanning the two ends of the shoulder strap and having a free end forming a flap adapted to project down into the mouth of said sack and to; mask the rear upper edge of said sack, and to serve as a chute for the picked cotton, with a series of snap hooks secured on the rear side of said harness and adapted to engage the corresponding eyelets on the rear of said sack near the upper end thereof, substantially as described.

2. In a cotton'pickers sack arrangement,

'the combination with a tubular sack, re-

versible end for end, and open at both ends, and a series of eyelets secured to the exterior of said sack near each end thereof but spaced respectively a short distance toward the longitudinal center of said sack from said ends, with a series of loops secured'to said sack adjacent to said eyelets, of aastrap rove through the loops near the lower endof thesack, and a line rove through said eyelets at the lower end of the sack for closing said lower end when desired, and a sack, and to serve as a chute for the picked harness comprising a shoulder strap and an cotton, With a series of snap hooks secured apron secured thereto, said apron spanning on the rear side of said harness and adapted 1 the two ends of the shoulder strap, and havto engage the corresponding eyelets on the ing a free end forming a flap adapted to 'rear of said sack near the upper end thereof, prcject down into the mouth of said sack substantially as described.

and to mask the rear upper edge of said CLINT BUSH TIPTON. 

